Lying to Conceal a Misdeed: A Final Fantasy X-2 Vignette
by Word Jester
Summary: He didn't have to stick his neck out there for her, he didn't owe her anything - but he just looked at her and smiled his easy smile, "What are teammate for?"Set during the time of the Crimson Squad.


_**The truth about the truth: it hurts, so we lie – Lying to conceal a misdeed**_

This day was quickly going from bad to worse.

The world was rapidly dissolving into chaos around her, explosions and the horrible screeching of dying fiends and comrades rang loudly in her ears. The desert sun beat heavily down on her slender build, adding more weight to her already burdened body.

She fought hard to run atop the sand as each step sent her sinking deeper into the endless sea. She wished – not for the first time since their deployment – that she were an Al Bhed for they were known for their ability to easily navigate the endless hell of the Bikanel.

A wrong misstep to her right set off an underground mine, the force of the explosion catapulting her into the air. All the air was forced from her body as she flew through the air and landed harshly with the sandy ground. Moving more on instinct than anything else, she rolled to her feet so as to avoid being buried in the dune before she attempted to catch her breath.

An ear-piercing screech drew her attention above her, towards the giant, flying fiend coming straight at her. She scrambled for the gun strapped to side and pointed it in the general location of the beast's heart. Calming her racing nerves, she got her target within her crosshairs and pulled the trigger.

The familiar pull of the gun never came, nor did the near-deafening sound of the bullet releasing from the chamber echo loudly in her ear – the gun was jammed.

Cursing her luck, she turned the weapon so she was holding it like a bat and prepared herself to swing. The monster dropped within swinging range and the she-Guado cocked her weapon back and swung with all her might, her eyes closed tightly.

She expected to feel the crushing weight of the monster atop her, ceasing her breathing and effectively cutting off her air supply but no crushing feeling came. When another moment passed and she still stood breathing, the girl cracked open an eye and came face to face with the fiend now laying dead before her. She blinked dumbly in surprise, unsure of the recent turn of events.

"Pull back, Siri! Our work here is done!"

The call was faint above the noise but the she-Guado found herself turning towards the owner of the voice as if on auto-pilot. The familiar face of her teammate calmed her shaky nerves and, nodding her head, she raced towards him.

…**Later, Back at Camp…**

"What the hell happened back there, Guado?"

Siri looked up from her disassembled weapon and into the face of her team leader, Nooj. The crippled brunette regarded her with a steel-like gaze that was easy to read: he was not pleased with her. "We could have lost you today, or worse, another one of our team."

The she-Guado bowed her head in shame. She knew he was right; it was standard procedure to check and make sure her weapon was clean and functioning properly and it left a bitter taste in her mouth to know she had made a rookie mistake.

"Hey, lay off her will ya?"

Siri looked up in surprise to see her savior, another teammate, this one with the blonde hair and green eyes of an Al Bhed. He stood with his arms thrown behind his head and an easy smile upon his lips, something that always put the she-Guado at ease.

"This doesn't concern you, Al Bhed," Nooj snapped. He wasn't happy that someone was undermining his authority, especially when that someone was an Al Bhed. "Why don't you go tinker with one of the destroyed machina we managed to salvage?"

The blonde man waved the suggestion away lazily, as if to say "been there, done that".

"It wasn't Siri's fault her weapon malfunctioned, that model is out of date and would have messed up sooner or later." He offered the silent girl a reassuring smile. "It was just her bad luck that it happened sooner."

"Are you saying we were given faulty weapons?" The question was rhetorical and the icy tone in which it was asked suggested neither Guado nor Al Bhed attempt to answer it.

"That's something that should definitely be brought to our superiors' attention," the blonde suggested. Nooj nodded his head tightly in agreement before stomping away to locate a superior officer. The two companions watched him until he disappeared around a corner.

The Al Bhed whistled lowly. "Man I am so glad I'm not Maester Kinoc right now." He chuckled at his own joke before turning to return to his duties.

"Gippal."

The blonde Al Bhed turned slightly to look over his shoulder at the fair-haired girl. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the grateful smile upon her lips.

"Thank you."

Gippal rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and returned the smile. "Hey, what are teammates for?"


End file.
